What is Leadership?

What is Leadership?Monica A Kelly, Member, Student (MBA), United States

Leadership includes the ability to courageously examine ones assumptions and adjust thinking to match the reality of the times.

Leadership exists because there are people who follow. To be an effective leader, one must be aware of conditions that impact the situation at hand and be ready to take action by chosing the most advantageous solution possible. Among other attributes of an effective leader, is the ability to listen objectively to other's opinions and to consciously evaluate what is useful to solve a given problem.

Achieving clarity of purpose and sticking to ethical principles are among the essential qualities of an effective leader. Sometimes the right action means taking a practical approach that may not be the popular one at the moment.

Which brings me to another leadership quality, vision. Vision means the ability to extrapolate from historical experiences in order to predict possible outcomes. Since no one person is a repository of all knowledge, it is necessary to surround yourself with a variety of experts who are willing and able to share their expertise to meet an agreed upon common goal.

The leader must also be careful to stimulate discussion with people who may have different, even opposing, points of view so that as broad a picture of a given scenario may be painted. Which brings me to another leadership trait, high tolerance for opposition. Since we are all a work in progress let us all continue to ask meaningful questions which challenge our complacency and irrelevant assumptions.